Hat



P. E- YOUNG Dec. 6, 1955 HAT Filed July 20, 1955 PHIL/P E You/v6 INVENTOR.

BY W

MA 7TOENEY.

United States Patent 6 HAT Philip E. Young, Arcadia, Calif., assignor to George S.

Bailey Hat Company, Los Angeles, Calif a corporation of California Application July 20, 1953, Serial No. 368,998

1 Claim. (Cl. 2-178) My invention relates to hats, and more particularly to those hats made from cloth, felt or straw, and which include a crown having a brim extending therefrom and provided with a welted edge.

An object of my invention is to provide a novel, simple and inexpensive construction for a hat brim which will present a more attractive appearance than heretofore obtained in hats having the brim provided with a bound outer edge.

Another object of my invention is to provide a novel and inexpensive construction for the outer peripheral edge of the brim of a hat whereby the brim is rendered durable and may present and lend a distinctive and attractive appearance to the hat as a whole.

A further object of my invention is to provide a hat brim with a novel bound edge and welted brim construction and which is so reinforced that when curled or rolled into a desired shape will maintain such shape until intentionally changed.

The invention resides in the parts and combination and arrangement of the parts, as well as the method of making a bound edge welted and reinforced hat brim, all as more fully described in detail in the accompanying specification and defined in the claim.

Other objects, advantages and features of invention may appear from the accompanying drawing, the subjoined detail description, and the appended claim.

The accompanying drawing illustrates the invention in some of the forms I at present deem preferable.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a hat, the brim of which is constructed in accordance with my invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view, taken on line 22 Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a fragmental sectional view on the same scale as Fig. 2 and illustrates the position of the reinforcing wire before folding the taped edge of the brim to form the welt disclosed in Figs. 1 and 2.

Fig. 4 is a view analogous to Fig. 3 but showing the outer edge of the hat brim folded onto the under side of the brim.

Fig. 5 is a view analogous to Fig. 3 illustrating the position of the reinforcing wire to form the welt disclosed in Fig. 4.

The hat 1 may be of any suitable material such as straw, cloth or felt, and is preferably provided with a blocked crown 2, and which as shown is of a style claimed in my copending application for design patent therefore, filed July 20, 1953, Serial Number D. 26,045, now Patent No. Des. 175,061, granted June 28, 1955. The hat 1 is provided around the lower edge of the crown 2 with a hat band 3, and a brim 4 extends laterally from the lower edge ICC of the crown 2 as is customary and usual with the style and type of hats illustrated.

My invention comprises first binding the outer peripheral or free edge 5 of brim 4 with a tape or ribbon 6 which is folded over and embraces the raw or free edge 5 of brim 4 and is secured thereto in any suitable manner as by a single row of stitching 7. The taped edge 8 of the brim 4 is then folded inwardly or back onto the surface of the brim, either upon the upper or top surface 9 thereof as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, or upon the bottom or lower surface 10 thereof as shown in Fig. 4, and the infolded taped edge is then fixed or secured to the surface of the hat brim in any suitable manner as by the double row of stitching 11 which preferably straddles the row of stitching 7.

The edge 8 of the brim is preferably folded inwardly and onto the brim surface 9 or 10 to such extent that the tape 6 will be spaced inwardly from the finished edge 12 of the completed hat that the material of the brim is exposed around the peripheral edge thereof and outside of the infolded taped edge. It will thus be seen that the finished edge 12 of the hat brim 4 will be formed by a fold of the brim 4 between its outer taped edge 8 and its inner end that is connected to the hat crown 2, and that the said taped edge 8 will be spaced inwardly from the finished edge 12 and secured on the surface (either top or bottom) of the hat brim 4 to provide a novel, ornamental and dis-,

tinctive welted edge for the finished hat brim which may then be pressed or blocked fiat.

It will be apparent that the tape or ribbon 6 may be of a color contrasting to that of the brim proper to thereby add to the ornamentality of the finished hat; and also that difierent effects are obtained by folding the taped edge 8 onto the top surface 9 of the brim 4, rather than onto the bottom surface 10.

I have also discovered that in the formation of my novel hat brim, a wire of soft material, such as a soft copper wire 13, or the like, may be positioned around the peripheral edge of the brim 4 and adjacent the inner edge of tape 6 before it is folded inwardly onto the brim surface 9 or 10, and when so folded will enclose and position such wire 13 within and adjacent the inner fold of the edge 12, thereby providing means in addition to the welt for stiffening the brim, and also providing means whereby the outer edge of the brim may be side rolled, front rolled or otherwise formed into various shapes which will be maintained in the position or shape to which the wire 13 is deformed.

I claim:

In a hat having a crown, a brim extending from said crown and having a welted edge around the periphery thereof; said welted edge including a tape like member folded about and secured to the outer free edge of said brim; said brim being doubled back onto itself so that said outer taped edge is folded inwardly and onto a surface of the brim a predetermined distance from said brim fold so as to expose the material of the brim around and between said tape member and the fold in said brim; and a wire of soft material positioned within the fold of said brim and adjacent one free edge of said tape like member.

References Cited in the file of this patent 

